WFP calls on billionaires Jeff Bezos & Elon Musk; seeks $6bn help to mitigate world hunger

Just a small group of ultra-rich individuals could help solve world hunger with just a fraction of their net worth, said United Nations (UN) World Food Programme’s director, David Beasley. On CNN’s ‘Connect the World’, WFP director specifically cited Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Tesla CEO Elon Musk and said that billionaires need to “step up now, on a one-time basis”. In the interview which aired on Tuesday, Beasley said, “$6 billion to help 42 million people that are literally going to die if we don't reach them. It's not complicated.”

Notably, Beasley asking for $6 billion implies that he is seeking just 2% of Tesla chief executive’s fortune, stated CNN. According to Bloomberg, Musk has a net worth of nearly $289 billion. The net worth of US billionaires has significantly shot up since the COVID-19 pandemic began which took a serious toll on the existing socio-economic crisis across the globe. CNN cited progressive groups Institute for Policy Studies and Americans for Tax Fairness, to state that the net worth of US billionaires stood at $5.04 trillion in October.

The WFP director said that a “perfect storm” of several crisis such as climate change and the COVID pandemic meant that nations are “knocking on famine’s door”. As per the WFP report released on Monday, 25 October, at least 50% of the Afghan population, 22.8 million people, are facing an acute hunger crisis. The report concluded that increasing unemployment and a liquidity crisis meant that the South Asian country is wobbling on the edge of a humanitarian crisis with 3.2 million children under the age of five, being at risk. 

US recognised link between climate change & migration

In a series of reports published by US President Joe Biden administration, the government for the first time acknowledged the link between climate change and migration. The Biden administration issued a stark warning last week stating, "The effects of climate change will be wide-reaching and will pose problems for every government." Additionally, the WFP has also warned about how climate change drove migration, particularly in the “Dry Corridor” region in Central America.

For example, take the United States and the region in Central America, the Dry Corridor, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua -- just down in that area alone," said Beasley in the televised interview. "We're feeding a lot of people down there and the climate is just changing with hurricanes and flash flooding; it's just devastating."

(IMAGE: AP)